November

The themes of November included the colors black and orange, the numbers 5 & 6, the letters c, w, and t, triangles, and the concept of "on the go"- transportation.  The children learned a lot about the traditions of Thanksgiving and why they come to be.  They also made many Thanksgiving crafts, sang songs, and talked about what they are thankful for.

The Eagles learned about different modes of transportation used by children around the world.  They were pretty excited to learn that kids in Thailand take boats to school!  We continued to weave transportation in our daily discussions all month.  We read a book each day called, "We Go To A Star".  This book went home last week, feel free to continue having your child "read" it to you.  I hope that some of the site words are looking familiar to them at this point.  We worked in our journals daily writing the colors, shape, numbers, and letters of the month.  The journals went home today.  We completed an experiment outside where I explained what happens when pressure builds up and we blew up a bottle of soda up by adding mentos.  I am encouraging the scientific method (not calling it that though) and we are really focusing on making predictions right now.  Needless to say, the kids enjoyed the soda geyser.  In addition to our turkey themed art, the kids made projects with streets & signs. 

The Hawks worked on the same themes, just at a different level.  The Hawks made a wreath craft, train art, bus art, dried pasta necklaces, and a Thanksgiving plate collage.  They worked on math while counting turkeys 1-5 and by sorting orange and black shapes and gluing them to a sheet.  The kids traced the letter w with paper, practiced making the sound for t, and played with train dominoes.  The kids ready many transportation books and sang many wheel/vehicle related songs!

Both groups helped make a nutritious Thanksgiving themed trail mix for our Thanksgiving feasts.  They also both worked on road safety, practicing when to walk and when to stop while crossing the street.

 

 

Pictures of the Eagles' feast are above, if you took pictures of the Hawk feast, please email them to me so I can post them to the blog!

 

Have a great week,
Ms. Jen

Oct 29th - Nov 2nd in the Hawk Class

Jackson taking the lead!

Jackson, Rintaro, and Paige





Captain Grady with Princess Gabby

Maddox as Spider-Cowboy



Layla as Minnie Mouse



Princess Paige



Gabby

Kids Trick or Treating

The Hawks enjoyed trick-or-treating at Elm Park Preschool last week.  We talked about safety on Halloween night and practiced our manners while knocking on doors.  The kids were so excited going from door to door on campus, the looks on their faces were priceless!!

 

We made Halloween crafts and continued with our monthly themes in class.

Oct 29- Nov 2nd in the Eagle Class

Elm Park Kids trick-or-treating

Awesome treats brought
in by Hilary and Heather



Santa mixed up his holidays!!



Last week at Elm Park the Eagles had fun celebrating Halloween.  The kids practiced the protocols for safe trick-or-treating and showed off their costumes on Wednesday.  They looked awesome in their costumes!!

We continued with our monthly themes and studied -ig words.  Don't forget to continue reading their books at home!

Logan, Grady, Roway, Sydney, Abby, and Shabnam

October 15-19 & 22-26

Here is the big catch up on blogging!!

The past few weeks have been busy and gone fast at Elm Park.  Our themes have included: Halloween activities, apple orchards, apples, the colors green and brown, the numbers 3 and 4, the shape of the rectangle, and Johnny Appleseed.

The Eagles started their book "Go, Go, Go".  They've completed the book and are reading it daily.  They completed their journals, which reflected all monthly themes up to this point.  They completed a tree project, creating a trunk with fall colored leaves glued on.  They've been practicing writing their names.  They've made apple crafts, have worked on identifying numbers 1-10, and have completed a few pumpkin crafts.  We talked about -ad words (sad, mad, bad, rad, etc.).  We talked about Johnny Appleseed and made a little Johnny doll.

The Hawks made spider webs, created magic wands, and colored a spider sheets.  We talked about Johnny Appleseed and made a little Johnny doll.  The kids explored in the rice bucket, created an apple core project, and worked on fine motor skills while coloring and squishing play doh.

We all enjoyed a trip to the Pumpkin Patch.  The highlight was the hayride on the tractor, waving to scarecrows!

Parents, please send me pictures of the Pumpkin Patch so I can post them online!  Emailing them to me would be great...

:) Ms. Jen

October 8-12

Last week at Elm Park the Eagles and Hawks continued to explore the theme of traveling.

The Eagles learned the letter f.  The practiced the letter in many different ways (on white boards, paper, etc).  They continued to read the book, Fido Gets Dressed.  The book went home so you can continue to read it with them at home.  The kiddos made cameras and maps as we talked about traveling.  On Friday, they made drums that we will complete this week.  The kids matched numbers while putting spoons with dots next to its appropriate plate (with the number).  We are really working on number recognition at this point (to 10, of course).  The Eagles also cut a veggie sheet, matching colored veggies into baskets.  They are getting so patient with their seat activities.  We continued to talk about feelings and calming down when angry.  We sang travel songs and our if you're sad and you know it- feeling song.

The Hawks learned a song about caterpillars.  We also read The Very Hungry Caterpillar and then they made a blue caterpillar to take home.  We talked about the new season, fall.  The kids made a fall scene, a picture with leaves.  We talked a little about Halloween coming up and they made masks.  The Hawks also made stamp art. 

In both classes we been discussing pumpkins and our upcoming trip to the pumpkin patch.  We are all looking forward to it!!

October 1-5

Last week at Elm Park we discussed traveling.  We talked about what people pack to take on trips, different ways people travel (boat, car, plane, train, etc), and places people go.  The letter of the week was e and we are discussing the color blue.

The Eagles made suitcases and learned a song about traveling on boats, planes, trains, and cars.  They made a car headband and pretend suitcases.  We focused on the letter e, rainbow writing the letter and printing the letter e on paper.  They made the book "Fido Gets Dressed" and practiced reading it all week.  I showed them that they can put together the letter sounds to make words and we practiced -at words (fat, cat, mat, sat, bat, hat, pat, rat).  They are excited to begin the reading process.  We also did a listening activity called let's move.  We talked about feelings and discussed how it is OK to cry.  Of course we discussed situations that are "cry worthy" and times when we might be mad or sad but don't need to cry about it.  We sang the song to the tune "if you're happy and you know it clap your hands", but our words were "If you're sad and you know it have a cry, if you're sad and you know it have a cry, if you're sad and you know it, don't be afraid to show it, if you're sad and you know it have a cry."

The Hawks also learned about travel.  They made car tracks in paint and made a car/wheel scene.  The older Hawks made a car, boat, train and car sheet.  The children completed an activity called let's move where they followed directions while moving.  They painted a caterpillar which went home today.  The younger children are getting into a routine nicely.  The beginning of the year can be difficult for this age group but they are beginning to function well in our daily routine and really enjoying school.

Please pay for the Pumpkin Patch field trip if you have not already done so (and are planning to attend).  We're looking forward to a great trip to the patch!

Have a great week!

September 17-28

Observation of baby turtle

working out those little fingers in play doh

Observation of baby turtle

Abby's fish picture

Logan's fish picture



Our class next

Get comfy because this is going to take awhile!!

Sorry for skipping last week, here is the weekly blog for the past two weeks with condensed information.

 

The Hawks learned about the homes of creatures.  The children got to observe a hatchling turtle and we talked about the home (habitat) of turtles.  They also learned where fish live and created a fish scene.  I included the pictures above because I wanted you to see how instruction is differentiated in the classroom.  The younger children's fish scenes were a lot more basic, the older children colored and cut all their pictures alone.  We often cover the same topics, but the content is taught at a different level to remain age appropriate.  We also talked about bird homes- nests.  The children observed the class nest that the Eagles made and they made their own individual nests on paper.  Discussion in the class also focused on what animals live in the jungle.  The Hawks made monkey puppets on Tuesday of this week and made snakes on Thursday.  The kids got to "fish" in our water sensory table and worked their fine motor skills while working on lacing cards.  Of course we continued to talk about circles and the color red and counted every day to 10 and recited the alphabet (this happens daily).   

 

The Eagles continued on with the monthly themes and read the book "Big" and journaled every day.  Their books and journals went home today.  Please praise all their hard work in their journals and encourage them to continue reading "Big" at home to you.  They often "read" from the context clues (pictures), this is ok and is to be expected.  I want them to practice the left to right at this stage and to guess the unknown words by reading the first letter of the word.  Please have them track the words left to right with their fingers and help them guess when stuck by asking what sound the first letter of the word makes.  The Eagles talked about habitats too.  We covered the habitats of fish, birds, jungle animals, and people.  To reinforce learning, the children made the following art projects- a river scene, a nest, door hangers (for their rooms), a fish scene, a lion puppet, and a snake (to go home Monday).  The Eagles also "fished" in the water sensory table, worked their fine motor skills while lacing, and practiced identifying numbers 1-10 with bear counting.

 

Thanks to the Eagle parents for sending in nesting materials, all of the materials really helped with the projects I had planned!  I used the scientific method with the kids (minus the terminology) as we selected prime building materials and left them out for the birds to "borrow".  We guessed what would be taken and then left the tray out for two days.  The birds took a lot of our materials, then we brought the tray in a discussed the results.  They were very excited at the idea that a bird could be building a nest with our materials all the way in Mexico!  Ok, perhaps unlikely, but in theory possible.  I also started the "direction activity" with the Eagles.  In this activity I give them a picture and give directions, like "color the middle door red", or "color the biggest tree green".  The kids try to focus on the directions and color as directed.  This is always interesting the first time, but I'm sure with practice they'll be listening like champs!  I'm also in the process of assessing the students to check for Kindergarten readiness.  I will discuss results with you, and don't worry, we don't expect them to know much of it at this point.

 

We went to chapel on Wednesday and Thursday of this week.  The kids LOVED the live guitar music played by Ms. Barbara as they danced around.  We're excited to be back to meeting with Father Gary and Ms. Barbara.

 

I think that's it for now... enjoy your weekend!
Ms. Jen

September 10th-14th

What a busy week! 

In addition to our monthly themes, we talked about habitats this week.  I brought in a baby turtle for the M/W/F class (now called the Eagles) and I'll bring him back for the T/Th class (now called the Hawks) to observe during this upcoming week.

The Eagle class talked about body parts as we did the hokey pokey.  We are talking about less discussed body parts like the ankle, calf, wrist, shoulder, etc.  The children learned about turtles when I brought in our new baby red-eared slider.  We discussed animals having land and water habitats, discussed the habitats of many different animals, and the kids made their own turtle.  On Friday we discussed their feelings and how to control anger, they learned that by counting to 10 they give themselves an opportunity to cool down and not act out in anger.  We also talked about what makes us happy, sad, mad, excited, etc.  They worked on subtizing (recognizing small numbers by sight without counting- ie. on dice).  They also made two books, one with animal habitats and the other called "Big".  They are getting really good at cutting skills and patient with assembling books, which requires putting pages in order, cutting, coloring, etc.  Then we practice reading books which is really exciting for the kids!  The kids have practiced the letters a and b.  We discussed fire safety this week and had a fire drill.

I encourage you, as a family to talk about what to do in a fire at your house and to pick a "safe" family meeting spot outside your home.  I meet with my boys at the mailbox which is in our cul-de-sac.  If your family knows where to go in the case of a fire (first OUT of the house, then to the meeting spot), it can help reunite your family if an emergency does happen.  And, then no one is trying to go back into the house to look for missing children.  This concept may be too much for our Hawks, but I think the Eagles can learn and remember this, especially if you take time to practice every month or so.

The Hawk class learned about turtles as well.  We also discussed animal habitats (although I called it animal homes) and they completed a sheet reinforcing this concept.  They are really learning to cut well also, with almost half of the children cutting with assistance at this point.  We worked on gross motor skills as the children tossed bean bags in to a hula hoop (called a giant circle to reinforce our circle theme).  The kids also colored circles, traced their hands as we discussed body parts, and worked with pattern bears (recognizing and predicting patterns).

Both classes worked with our parachute as we played inside during part of our play time on the extremely hot days.

For those of you who missed Back to School Night on Thursday, here is an outline of what was discussed.  Please call or stop in if you would like more information...

ELM PARK PRESCHOOL

Back to School Night

1.      Basic Educational Goals for Eagles (4-5 year olds) - Letter recognition (upper and lower case), sounds of letters, shapes, counting to 20, number recognition to 20, write name, & identify colors.  Why we don’t stress upper case letters.  Overall goal- have fun and love learning! 

2.     Basic Educational Goals for Hawks (2-3 year olds)- Social Growth, letter recognition, increase eye hand coordination, strengthen hands (pincer grip), share, take turns, follow directions, take instruction from adults, recognize name, etc.  Overall goal- have fun and love learning!

3.     Read blog and ask questions.  Blog can be found off main webpage www.elmparkpreschool.com.

4.     Assessing- Kids will be assessed.

5.     Introduce room moms- discuss holiday traditions.

6.     Picture Day- Will be set for November.  Date to be determined.

7.     Nuts and bolts

a.     Birthday Treats- please bring in small treats, limiting sugar

b.  Don't forget to sign your child in and out daily

 

c.      Sharing will be on Wednesdays (Eagles) and Thursdays (Hawks)

d.    Please have children wear loose clothing for toileting- to promote independence.

e.     Shoes (closed shoes with socks)- are needed for playground

f.       Snack- you may bring snack for your child if you prefer.  Please have Hawks practice drinking from cups.

8.      Donations- Any donations would be appreciated

a.     Snack- dried or fresh fruit, crackers, bread, veggies, etc.

b.     Wipes for the kids

c.      Paper- white copy or construction

d.     Playground equipment- balls, chalk, etc.

September 4th-7th

This week we continued with the monthly themes of red, circle, the letter a, and how we are all special people.

The M/W/F group worked on writing the number 1 and the letter a.  They wrote on white boards, in blue finger paint, with food, and in their journals.  We talked about why we think the other students are special, it was hilarious.  Grady likes Abby because she "likes his mom".  Sydney liked Rowan because he is "hardly ever mean".  Their answers were precious.  We talked about the homes that we live in and the kids drew their own house.  The kids are practicing writing their names.  When they can't, I write it with their hand- helping them.  I'm trying to have them write their names at least 2-3 times per day.  The children worked on recognizing the numbers 1 through 5 (this is review for some) by sorting beans into egg containers.  This group gained two students this week, Helena and Logan.  Our new students are awesome, we are happy to have them!  We started a star incentive program this week.  The children earn stars for good behavior and will get rewards for stars.

The T/TH students worked on circle rubbings, cutting and coloring a circle, and stamping.  We are focusing on increasing hand strength that will eventually help them with the difficult coordination required for writing.  We try to give them many opportunities to work those little hands, sometimes with play doh or free drawing.  They practiced their pincer grips while sorting beans into egg containers.  The children made their houses and put their family in open doors.  We also tried a parachute activity inside to get some exercise inside away from the heat.  Maddox joined this group on Thursday.  He fits in perfectly with our students and had a great day!  We have another little girl joining our group on Tuesday named Gabby.

Sorry there are no pictures this week!  I'm searching for my missing camera and took pictures on my phone, which I can't figure out how to get on the blog.  I need an IT guy!!  Rest assured that the kids were cute as usual this week, and look forward to pics next week (I hope)!

August 27-31



Jackson's building



Paige

Grady

The kids painting

Troy

The second week of school was another great one!

At Elm Park, we continued on with the themes of - the letter a, the number 1, the color red, the shape of circle, and the idea that we are all unique and special.  The children made the letter a in shaving cream, on white boards, and with goldfish.  We continued to talk about how special we are all are.  The children made "me puppets" and made a me collage.  The older children counted and matched beans.

The kids began their journals, practicing letters and numbers.  The children are getting into a routine and getting to know each other.  The older children are really expanding their work skills, practicing patience and fine motor skills.

We are looking forward to starting chapel this week!

August 22-24

First Week Of School!!

We had a great first week at Elm Park Preschool!  Our themes are centered around the ideas of "I am special", homes to live in, and our beautiful earth.  We discussed how we are all unique and talked about hands and hand prints.  The kids made first day of school prints as a keepsake.  We discussed what types of homes that we all live in and put together a puzzle of a house.  The older children made UV bracelets to remind them to put on sunscreen in the sun.  We also have been discussing the importance of drinking water with the book "Potter the Otter Drinks his Water".  The older children also filled out a chart with their eye color, hair color, thumbprint, etc.  Then they filled out the same information on a friend.  We are really trying to celebrate differences and talk about what makes each child special. 

The younger children had a great first day of school.  They learned the routine, played, got to know each other, and really enjoyed themselves.  I was shocked at how smoothly the day went since this can be a tricky transition for the 2 and 3 year olds.

We're looking forward to a wonderful year!!

April 30- May 11

Wow, I need to catch up on the blogging!!  The past few weeks here at Elm Park have been fun and educational.  We learned about the letters Y and Z and continued on our themes of life cycles and gardens.  We've monitored our plant growth daily and learned what it takes to grow a plant.

We've learned about all of the creatures of the garden, both good ones and pests.  The children learned about butterflies, bees, moles, rabbits, and crows.  We discussed which plants grow as roots (carrots, turnips, potatoes, radishes) and which ones grow above ground (and on vines).  We also discussed the difference between fruit and veggies and the children grouped foods.

The children wrote the letters Y and Z in rainbow writing, in snack foods, and on white boards.  The older children continued to read their books, 'The Plant', 'Spring Weather Book', and 'What do they find?'

writing the letter Z in goldfish

The kids played many games with fruits and veggies (a deductive reasoning guessing game, matching games, feed the crow, & dominoes).  They also played 'mole math' and made a bunny basket and filled it with veggies that they made.   They made a butterfly picture too. 

Last week we focused on making Mother's Day cards and bracelets.  I hope you all enjoyed your lovely cards!!

Please welcome our new student Tyreek (and his mother Miharu).  Tyreek is 4 years old and will be with us until the fall when he will move on to PEPP.

Tyreek

Happy Birthday to Rowan who turned 4 years old last week!!

Rowan

I am keeping many art projects for our Art Exhibition on May 25th.  If you hear about projects but don't see them coming home, this is why.  Please join us on May 25th at 6 PM as we celebrate our little artists!

April 23-27

Grady built a snowman from play doh

Kids making a triangle



Kids making a circle



Happy Birthday to Sydney

Rowan snoozing

Sydney and Abby

Last week at Elm Park Preschool we continued the theme of gardens and garden creatures.  We also continued talking about life cycles.  The kids played a veggie matching game, counted vegetables, and played veggie dominos.  The letter of the week was y, we wrote the letter several times throughout the week, found y words, and found the letter in a sentence.

We completed "Jack and the Beanstalk" on the storyboard, which was a nice activity after planting beans in the garden.  The highlight of the week was digging up potatoes in the garden with the children, bringing them inside, cleaning them, then eating them (I microwaved to cook).  The kids loved to see the process from start to finish and everyone (except one child) ate and loved our fresh snack.  We planted more potatoes and beans in the garden and are checking them daily.

The kids learned to identify all parts of the flower and made flower headbands and leaves for their hands.  They can name the parts of the flower- stem, roots, leaves, and flower.  They love to pull weeds and observe the roots during play time outside (I'm sure Father Gary loves it too!)  We continued to discuss the butterfly life cycle and the children painted a butterfly picture.  I also brought in a preying mantis egg casing and we discussed the birth of the preying mantis.  I brought in pictures of an egg casing that we hatched at home.  The children made a handprint tree.

April 16-20

This week the Elm Park kiddos learned about the role of worms in gardens, the life cycle of a frog, the life cycle of a caterpillar, the number 11, the letter X, and the difference between wants and needs.  We sang songs about butterflies and caterpillars and wiggled to a worm song on the ground!

We continued to monitor the plants that we planted.  The grass is growing nicely and the flowers have struggled a bit.  They are so excited to check the growth each day. 

The older children continued to read their books, worked on identifying the first sound in a word, and practiced their letter writing.  We all worked hard to find X words (not an easy task).  And the whole group practiced the letter X on the white boards and on a sheet of paper.  The children cut out a sheet of wants & needs & money and had to "buy" the needs.  For the most part they got the concept, although some viewed toys as needs!! 

Just a reminder, summer school sign-ups have begun and the price for our summer program will go up in May.  Hope  you are all having a wonderful week!!

Ms. Jen

April 9-13

This week at Elm Park, we began a new unit on plants and life cycles.  Other new themes for the month include the colors brown & orange, the shape of a diamond, and the social concept of patience.  This week, we focused on the letter W and the number 10.

We planted grass this week and talked about the parts of a plant (seed, stem, leaves, flowers, and fruit) and discussed what a plant needs to survive (dirt, water, and sun).  We also planted flowers right before the spring break so we are monitoring our plants daily for any new growth.  Each week of the month, we will discuss the life cycle of another creature.  This week we discussed frogs and each stage in their life cycle.

We learned a new game where someone describes an object while the other children guess what it is.  We're working on descriptive words and deductive reasoning.  We also began discussing opposites.

For months now, I've encouraged the kids to make letters with their hands, bodies, with food, etc, etc, etc.  Now that we've established this learning environment, it warms my heart to see them do it automatically.  Below I've included a picture of the kids making the letter W with goldfish.  Smart kidlets!!

March 26-30

The end of March at Elm Park Preschool, we finished up our unit on dinosaurs.  The children created watercolor/crayon pictures of a triceratops, created dinosaur scenes with a volcano and a dinosaur, made dinosaur foot prints, and created a class book on dinosaurs (they also wrote themselves a postcard of their favorite dino).  We reviewed all concepts for the month, including the colors purple and green, the numbers 6-9, and the letters S, T, U, and V.  We made our letters in food, white boards, crayons, and paint.

The kids planted seeds in anticipation for our April theme of plants and life cycles.  We've really been focusing on the beginning letters of a word and the children are amazing at identifying beginning sounds and letters.  The older children created and read daily a new book called "Out".

The children made Easter crafts and we had an egg hunt/party on the last day before Spring Break.  The kids enjoyed the crafts and candy!!



Makena and her dinosaur scene





Easter Egg Hunt




Ryder, Makena, and Britney make a dino picture





Keitaro and his puzzle







Easter Egg Hunt

Class Easter Party

Egg Hunt - Day 2

March 19-23

This week at Elm Park Preschool we focused on the letter U and the number 9.  We will continue on the themes of colors purple & green, dinosaurs, the shape oval, and forgiveness through the end of next week.  After spring break (first week of April) we will start a new unit. 

The kids wrote the letter U and number 9 on white boards, in rainbow colors, and in the air.  They searched for the letter U in sentences and brainstormed U words (not easy).  We continued to discuss using our imaginations while reading the story "I Was Going To Clean My Room".  We also participated in an interactive story called "Digging Up Bones".  Many stories read in class focused on Dinosaurs, both fiction and non-fiction. 

The kids counted to 9 every day, counting steps, claps, toys, etc.  The also completed a parrot math sheet, beginning the concept of adding.  The children completed a class interest chart about dinosaurs, answering yes and no and counting responses to questions.

We finished our dinosaur craft and made a pterodactlus.  They also created a drawing of a dinosaur scene.

Tomorrow we will discuss dinosaur footprints and climate change.  They will create dino feet to stomp around in!

Britney turned 5 this week so we celebrated her birthday on Tuesday.  She is acting very responsible these days, even asking to be class helper to help the other children.  It's so fun watching them grow up!

Britney says, "I'm five!"

Grady builds a tower.

Britney's party

Makena makes a dino picture.

Britney shows her art project.